Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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158. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if an application for a special needs assistant will be reviewed for a school (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24837/21]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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In December 2019, Government approved the national roll out of a new frontloading model for the allocation of SNAs support to primary and post-primary schools for students in mainstream classes, as part of the phased roll out of the School Inclusion Model (SIM).

In light of the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the introduction of the new Frontloaded Allocation Model for Special Needs Assistants for students in mainstream classes in primary and post -primary schools is to be deferred for a further year to the beginning of the 2022/23 school year.

The disruption prevented the delivery of the necessary training and information workshops to support the roll out of the new allocation model which had been planned for earlier this year.

The training and workshops are designed to help school leaders and teachers in their in-school planning for the new model and their engagement with parents. These sessions will now be rescheduled to take place during the 2021/22 school year. Further information will be issued by the NCSE in due course.

SNA allocations for 2021/22 school year will be based on the actual number of SNAs employed by a school on 30 April 2021 and the allocation on that date will be rolled over into 2021/22. No school will receive a reduced allocation.

SNA allocations for 2021/22 will be published later this month as in previous years.

My Department will also be publishing a circular this month to advise schools of the arrangements for the allocation of SNAs for the 2021/22 school year.

Providing access to SNA support continues to be based on primary care needs as outlined in DES Circular 0030/2014. SNA allocations for special classes and special schools are not affected by this arrangement.

The NCSE has responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs including the allocation of SNAs and reviews. My Department does not have a role in making individual school determinations.

As in previous years, where schools consider their SNA allocation to be inadequate to meet its needs for the 2020/21 school year, the school can seek a review by making an application to the NCSE which is available to schools throughout the current school year.

Schools may apply to the NCSE for additionality where they can demonstrate that the current allocation does not meet additional care needs within the mainstream classes in the school. Applications for additionality arising from significant new or emerging additional care needs, which cannot be catered within existing allocations, are dealt with by way of the exceptional review process.

Detailed information on the NCSE exceptional review process is published on the NCSE websitewww.ncse.ie.

A school can appeal the outcome of an exceptional review and details of how to do this are here.